Glowing praise for Badminton event

Record numbers flocked to Social Sport’s Glow in the Dark Badminton event at the Octagon on Tuesday, with proceeds going to charity.

221 attendees took part on the day, playing badminton with specialised glow-in-the-dark equipment in a darkened Octagon, with ticket sales and donations meaning over £400 was raised for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Glow-in-the-Dark Badminton was part of Badminton For Macmillan Week, a nationwide initiative organised by Badminton England.

Attendees paid £2 each to play in a 40-minute slot, competing and learning about badminton in the unusually dark setting of the Octagon Conference Hall.

Social Sport Officers James Blencowe and Martin Cook both praised the event.

Blencowe told Forge Sport: “It’s the third time we’ve ran the event and it’s the biggest Glow Badminton we’ve had to date. The turnout on the day and money raised for Macmillan is superb.”

“It’s a unique event taking sport to a different environment. It means students can easily take part who don’t usually play it for teams or clubs and we’re looking forward to setting it up again in March,” Cook added.

Students participating in Glow-in-the-Dark Badminton left rave reviews after their time at the Octagon event.

One said, “The time went too fast”, while another added, “Great fun, great songs.”

A participant described the event as “once in a lifetime fun”, and one explained “I didn’t know how to play, but picked it up easily”.

After yet another successful edition of the event, University of Sheffield students eagerly awaiting the chance to play will be able to enjoy a Glow-in-the-Dark Badminton outing next in 2017.